Plastic case for drills and the like



Oct. 27, 1964 w. E. COWLEY 3,154,192

PLASTIC CASE FOR DRILLS AND THE LIKE Filed 00"?- 15, 1962/II/IIII/II/IIIIl/II/IIIII III/IA 11/ I 1 31 I I i-E jg 24 a h I I Q j 12!! g 17 5g 26 W ,1! z] a g 9 jg f I M, I W 31? +6 26 3 QJIINVENTOR.

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United States Patent 3,154,192 FLASIIC (IASE FDR DRILILS AND THE LIKEWill am E. Cowley, Louisville, Ky, assignor to Vermpnt AmericanCorporation, Louisville, Ky, a corporation of Kentnelry Filed Oct. 15,1962, Ser. No. 230,540 4 Claims. (El. 24%6-17) The present inventionrelates to a pocket case made of polyethylene or other like plasticmaterial and adapted to hold a set of drills or various other smalltools such as screw extractors, an electricians tap and drill set,files, etc.

Various types of plastic drill cases have previously been proposed andsuch cases commonly comprise holding means inside the case for holdingdrills of various sizes in predetermined spaced apart relation. Forexample, such cases normally include a plurality of holding means eachof which is dimensioned to correspond to the size of a corresponding oneof the several drills adapted to be carried within the case. It isfurther known to provide a case of the type described with holding meanscomprising a pair of upwardly projecting ears which are inclinedangularly toward one another to form a restricted opening whereby adrill may be held between a corresponding pair of cars by snapping thedrill downwardly past the free ends of the ears.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a plasticpocket case embodying improved holding means for holding a set of drillsor the like therein.

A more specific object of my invention is to provide holding means aslast above mentioned which comprise a plurality of thin-walled tubulardowels arranged in parallel relation and spaced laterally to hold adrill which is pressed or wedged therebetween, such tubular dowels beingadapted to exert a substantially uniform pressure on a drill insertedtherebetween thus eliminating the necessity for snapping the drill intoits position in the case.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will beapparent from the following description, taken together with theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of a plastic drill case embodying thepresent invention, the case being shown closed as when carried in thepocket of the user;

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view showing the case of FIGURE 1 in openposition with a set of drills mounted therein;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical section taken substantially along the line 3-3 ofFIGURE 2 showing the manner in which a plurality of drills are squeezedor wedged between a plurality of thin-walled tubular dowels arranged inparallel relation for holding the drills in predetermined spaced apartrelation, the deformation of the tubular dowels being exaggeratedsomewhat for purposes of illustration;

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FIGURE 3 but taken on an enlarged scale tobetter illustrate the manner in which a drill is adapted to be squeezedbetween two or more dowels through deformation of the walls of thelatter; and

FIGURE 5 is a longitudinal section taken along the line 55 of FIGURE 2.

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown a plastic case comprisinga top or left side portion 11 and a bottom or right side portion 12joined together by a flexible hinge strip 13 which is integral with thetwo half portions. Interfitting clasp members 14 and 15 are provided onthe half portions 11 and 12, respectively, the latter half portion beingfurther provided with a pair of projecting stop members 16 which serveto locate the clasp member 14 when the case is in closed position.

substantially 3,154,192 Patented Oct. 27, 1964 As viewed in FIGURE 2,the left hand side portion 11 is provided with an upstanding rim 17which extends entirely around the periphery thereof, and the rim 17cooperates with a corresponding upstanding peripheral rim 18 integralwith the right hand side portion 12 so as to form together with top andbottom walls 19 and 20 a completely enclosed container for drills or thelike when the case is in closed position as shown in FIGURE 1. A tab 21is formed integrally with the right hand portion 12 and provided with anaperture 22 whereby the closed case may if desired be hung on a wall forstorage purposes.

In accordance with the invention, a plurality of tubular dowels 23 areformed integral with the walls 19 and 20 for holding a set of drills 24within the case 10. As shown in FIGURE 2, the dowels 23 aresubstantially perpendicular to the walls 19 and 20 so as to extendupwardly therefrom. In the particular embodiment shown, the dowels arearranged in staggered rows so that each drill 24 is held in place by apair of dowels 23 on one side and a single dowel 23 on the other side.Such an arrangement is effective to hold the drills firmly in position.However, various other arrangements may be utilized such as pro vidingonly a single dowel on each side of each drill or providing two or moredowels on each side thereof.

It is an important feature of the present invention that the dowels 23comprise relatively thin-walled resilient tubular members since such aconfiguration will facilitate deformation of the walls of the dowelswhen a drill is pressed or wedged therebetween. FIGURES 3 and 4illustrate the manner in which the various drills 24 are pressed betweencorresponding dowels 23 into seated positions whereby the dowel wallsare deformed in the area of contact immediately adjacent each drill andthe upper ends of the dowels tend to resume their natural roundconfiguration so as to overlap the drills slightly and thereby increasethe holding action so as to prevent them from being accidentallydisplaced from their seated positions. It will thus be understood thatthe length of the dowels should preferably exceed the diameter of thedrills to be held.

By way of example, it may be assumed that the drills illustrated inFIGURE 2 vary in diameter in increments of inch from A inch to inch.Accordingly, the largest drill shown at 24' may be assumed to be 4 inchin diameter. In this instance, the lateral distance between the singledowel 23' on one side of the drill 24' and the pair of dowels 23' on theopposite side thereof should preferably be on the order of 0.225 inch orabout 0.025 inch less than the drill diameter. Consequently, when thedrill 24 is pressed between the dowels 23' so as to be seated in theposition shown in FIGURE 2, it will deform the walls of the dowels asdescribed above. It will of course be understood that the various otherdowels 23 are laterally spaced so as to be adapted to hold a drill of acorresponding predetermined size when pressed therebetween.

One of the principal advantages of the tubular dowels describedhereinabove is the ease with which a drill or the like may be pressedtherebetween into a seated position. The drills are not snapped into aseated position as is common with respect to holding means heretoforeknown, but rather they are pressed into a seated position in a smoothuniform manner. In addition, the tubular dowels described herein areadapted to be formed integrally with a plastic pocket case of the typeshown by means of a mold which is relatively simple and inexpensive tomanufacture.

The walls of the dowels should be sufliciently thin that they will bereadily deformed when a drill or other tool to be held is pressedtherebetween, and at the same time they must be resilient so that theupper ends of the dowels will tend to resume their round configurationafter a drill is pressed therepast into a seated position. For example,the dowels 23' for holding the 41 inch drill 24 may have an outerdiameter of approximately inch and an inner diameter of approximatelyinch, thus providing.

a wall-thickness of inch. The several other dowels 23 provided for thecase may all be of the same size, or their diameters may be variedsomewhat, depending upon the number and size of the tools to be held andthe desired spacing of the tools within the case.

FIGURE 2 shows a cross rib 25 formed integral with the wall 19, and asimilar cross rib 26 formed on the wall 20. These ribs are provided witha plurality of U-shaped seat portions, one for each drill, and thus aidin maintaining the drills in proper alignment in the case. In theparticular embodiment shown, the seat portions are raised somewhat fromthe walls 19 and 20 so as to maintain the drills in spaced relation withrespect to such walls. Accordingly, a pair of fiat cross ribs 27 and 28are formed on the walls 19 and 20 in the area of the dowels 23 so as tomaintain the various drills substantially parallel. to the walls 19 and20 as best shown in FIG- URE 5. If desired, the several cross ribs maybe eliminated so that when the drills are pressed into their seatedpositions they will bear against the walls 19 and 20. The longitudinalspacing. of the dowels may also be varied to obtain the desired holdupon a drill pressed therebetween.

It should be understood that the present invention is adapted to holdvarious tools other than drills such as screw extractors,.files, anelectricians tap and drill set, or various other like objects.

While I have illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention, itshould be understood that various other embodiments will readily occurto those skilled in the art,

particularly with my disclosure before them, and thus I do not intendedto be limited to the foregoing description except insofar as theappended claims are so limited.

I claim:

1. A plastic pocket case for holding small tools of varying sizes inpredetermined spaced apart relation including a pair'of hinged wallportions each having holding means formed. integrally therewith, saidholding means comprising a plurality of thin walled tubular dowelsprojecting generally perpendicularly from said wall portions, saiddowels being made of a flexible material and being hollow so as topermit the walls thereof to flex inwardly, and said dowels being spacedapart laterally less than the lateral dimensions of corresponding toolsso as to permit. such tools to be wedged or squeezed therebetween.

2. A plastic pocket case for holding small tools of varying sizes inpredetermined spaced apart relation including a pair of hinged wallportions each having holding means formed integrally therewith, saidholding means comprising a plurality of resilient thinewalled tubulardowels projecting generally perpendicularly from said wall portions,said dowels being made of a flexible material and being hollow so as topermit the walls thereof to flex inwardly and being spaced apartlaterally less than the lateral dimensions of corresponding tools so asto permit such tools to be wedged or squeezed therebetween, and saidtubular dowels being of a length greater than the thickness of a tool tobe held whereby when a tool is pressed into a seated positiontherebetween so as to deform inwardly the flexible dowel walls incontact therewith, the upper ends of said dowels will tend to resumetheir natural round configuration thereby to increase their holdingaction.

3. In a plastic pocket case of the type which has hinged wall portionsand is adapted to hold a plurality of small tools of varying sizes inpredetermined spaced apart relation, the improvement comprising holdingmeans including a plurality of thin-walled tubular dowels made of aflexible plastic material and being hollow so as to permit the wallsthereof to flex inwardly, said dowels being formed integrally with thewall portions of said case so as to project generally perpendicularlytherefrom for a length greater than the thickness of a tool to be held,and said tubular dowels being spaced apart laterally less than thelateral dimensions of corresponding tools so as to permit such tools tobe wedged or squeezed therebetween.

4. In a plastic pocket case for holding drills of varying sizes inpredetermined spaced apart relation, the improvement comprising, incombination, a plastic wall portion for said case, and a plurality ofresilient thin-walled tubular dowels made of a flexible plastic materialand being hollowso as to permit the walls thereof to flex inwardly, saiddowels being formed integral with said wall portion so as to projectgenerally perpendicularly there from and being laterally spaced apartvarying distances which are less than the diameters of correspondingdrills so as to permit a drill to be wedged or squeezed betweencorresponding adjacent dowels whereby a dowel may cooperate with a drillon each side thereof to hold the same, and said dowels being of a lengthwhich exceeds the diameter of the corresponding drills whereby when adrill is pressed into a seated position between such dowels so.

as to deform inwardly the flexible dowel walls in contact therewith, theupper ends of said resilient dowels will tend to resume their naturalround configuration thereby to increase their holding action.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS784,601 Taylor Mar. 14, 1905 2,234,487 Davis Mar. 11, 1941 2,651,407Blackman Sept. 8, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 4,635 Great Britain Oct. 22, 1914716,791 Germany Jan. 29, 1942

1. A PLASTIC POCKET CASE FOR HOLDING SMALL TOOLS OF VARYING SIZES INPREDETERMINED SPACED APART RELATION INCLUDING A PAIR OF HINGED WALLPORTIONS EACH HAVING HOLDING MEANS FORMED INTEGRALLY THEREWITH, SAIDHOLDING MEANS COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF THIN-WALLED TUBULAR DOWELSPROJECTING GENERALLY PERPENDICULARLY FROM SAID WALL PORTIONS, SAIDDOWELS BEING MADE OF A FLEXIBLE MATERIAL AND BEING HOLLOW SO AS TOPERMIT THE WALLS THEREOF TO FLEX INWARDLY, AND SAID DOWELS BEING SPACEDAPART LATERALLY LESS THAN THE LATERAL DIMENSIONS OF CORRESPONDING TOOLSSO AS TO PERMIT SUCH TOOLS TO BE WEDGED OR SQUEEZED THEREBETWEEN.